Closure-release mechanism



Sept. 13, 1949. H. H. BORTHWICK CLOSURE-RELEASE MECHANISM Filed June 27,1947 Patented Sept. 13, 1949 UNITED STATES PATF EN OFFICE Harold EH.Borthwick, Lancaster, .-Pa., .assignor -to Armstrong Cork Company,Lancaster, Pa, a -;c orporation of Pennsylvania Application June 27,1947, SerialtNo.' 757,47!7

Claims.

Elhisinvention :relates to azmechanism .:for feeding closuresctorcontainers. It is concerned particularly with re mechanism for therelease of closnreszincident -to :application of the closures tocontainers to, Joe-sealed. The invention is particularlyuseful in thefeeding of :metal presson rclosures'ztoglass containers in steamVacuumizing machines. The invention is useful in the feeding ant-varioustypes of closures and lids to diifczent kinds of containers, includingglass bottles, jars, and metal cans.

lAnzobjentzufitheinuentiontisto provide a capreleasermechanism whichimaybe actuated solely by the movement of a iaITtO be closed, the jarresting rupon and being conveyed by frictional engagement with a zmetallink :belt or similar conveyor, obviating the znecessity :for the use of:star wheels, :worm conveyors, :or the "like to positively adiiive thecontainer.

Another object of :my invention is to provide acap-,rleasamechanismwvhich will :exert control oithe closureduring-ltheririitial;application.ofzthe closure to rtheacontainer.

A further 10111901; :01? :my invention is to provide a nap release'inwhioh a :cap .Wil]. be positively positioned a z predetiermmed:location :for engagement with the oncoming nontainer 'to be closed :and--.willr.b e controlled during assembly so as to :maintain proper;alignment between the container and :closure .during closureextraction.

Othenobjects ofrmy invention will becomeaoparent from -a consideration\oi :the :following detailed description given in conjunction with theattached xlrawingzin which:

i'liisia side elevatipniillustratingthe :c ap release mechanism of thisinvention;

figure .2 is ,2, itop :plan =view o'l :theapparatus shownlin figure -1mithithe cap arrester and .cap guiding lhorns :removed fligune is.arview similar ltojfiligure 1 showin the iposition :assumed ;.by :the:various parts upsn elevation of the container closure above the stops;and

ii'igure 1-4 is an enlarged :plan view :of one of the :closure releasezfingers 'n'f :Eigure Referring rto :E'igure :1, :the mechanism includesa soap chute or track 1' which is :inclined with respect :to'thehorizontal. ,An angle -.of '37 has been;-onnd:acceptable.i-Thezangle-rof inclination should be such that {closures tied :into thechute zrwillanovehyigravity alongthe chute-toe positiondneengagementwithithe cap-release mech-- anism. A;portion only:.of the chute-zonesbeen shown. :lThe length 20f :the ichute :is not impontant; it:generally is dong enough :to -accom- 2 modate a few closures. The-chute2 is formed With-edge guides 3, artop-plate 4, and a bottom plate 5. A,pair of arresterst ,is provided for engagementwithrthe toprofitheclosures fed down thechute 2. Guidinghorns ,1 are-also provided.

The cap release includes a pair of resilient fingers 8 :whichareattachedto the-edge guides 3 at :their respective shanks .-s by means of hollowhead machine screws 9- .Ihe fin ers =8 are :best shown in Figure 2. Theyare-formed of sheet metal and are preferably zmade of heat-treatedcopper beryllium alloy -O,-that they maybe ro peatedly :fiexed in theoperation -of .the :device without fatigue. Any yieldablefatigue-resistant metal maylbe used. The-fingers 8 are Tor-medalscomplemental pairs with a \rightehand finger and aloft-hand finger. iheli-ingers rarebent inward- 1v, as indicated at --HJ,-.and-eachterminates in a stop :l-.l which is disposed :in the path of movement ofclosures ,I-2 moving down the chute 2. I The stops ill -,have\closurewengaging --p0rti0ns Pas shown in Eigure 4 a ainst which theclosure lies when its-forward :motionisa-rrested, as shown in Figure 2.Thespacing between the stops H is less than the diameter of hecap l2, anh positioning :is so determined that when a cap i 2 lies'inengagementwith-the -stops M its skirt will intersect the pathlof movement voi thelip i a jar is moving in a direction'ofth-earrow shown in Figure 1. Itwill be observed-by reference to that figure that therstops ll areishortand may be readily-surmountedrbyracslight upward movement of the capI-2.The height ofthestops ii should, however, be suflicient toprevent-thecaps moving :down the chute .from surmounting the stops upon impacttherewith and should be :high enough to prevent overriding due tovibration incidental to operation oof the :machine. The stops shouldIce-maintained as low aspossible-in order to facilitate the surmouhtingof the same by the cap upon-irnpact of the container 14 with the cap.The stops-H have closure-supporting portions C (Figure A) upon-which-.the-:edg.e I of the closure skirt'may slide during its extraction fromthe release, as shown-in Iigure :Itwill-be observed that thestops I!aredirected radially inwardly so that :the direction of impact of thecap 12 therewithawill.be'at-anangle such thatithe resultantforcewilll-not directthe fingers outwardly in an :amount sufllcient 'topass the cap :l2 therebetween. vAs zwilybe observed from Figure 2, theapplication of :force .byithe cap 12 to the fingers II will be along thelongitudinal axis of the 'cap chute. without :any substantial componentof force normal thereto which would be required to force the fingersapart.

Disposed above the stops H and integral wit the fingers 8 are guides [5which are curved gradually outwardly and are spaced apart a distancewhich is less than the diameter of the cap it. The height of the guidesI5 is determined to some extent by the depth of the skirt of the capbeing fed through the mechanism. The height should be sumcient that thesurface G of the guides l 5 will engage the skirt of the cap to exer-'cise control of the cap during the extraction movement, the cap beingtilted, as indicatedin Figure 3, during extraction. Preferably, theguides iii are so positioned that they engage the cap l2 substantiallyimmediately upon elevation of the cap over the stops l I with only aminor,

forward motion of the cap necessary tobring the guides [5 intoengagement with the cap forwardly of the center thereof. This isindicated by the chain line in Figure 2/ The guides continue to exercisecontrol over lateral movement of the cap by their engagement with thecap periphery during'a substantial portion of the forward move ment ofthe cap. As the cap is withdrawn from between the fingers 8, theygaresprung outwardly until the fingers engage the periphery of the cap onopposite sides along a line drawn through the center of the cap, and,thereafter, the fingers 8 retract inwardly until the cap'has been movedto' a position where the distance between the points of engagement ofthe guides IS with the periphery of the cap is equalto the normaldistance between the guides l5. v V V V The guides l5 are'curved sothata substantial component of force is directed outwardly in bothdirections normal to the axis of the cap chutel Such force causesthe'fingerstobe flexed outwardly about their respective jpoints ofconnection 9. Thus; the cap is initially restrained against forwardmotion by the stops ll forming part of the yielding fingers 8, thecurvature of the stops I I being purposely such that the fingers 6 willnot be flexed to any substantial degree by the impact of the cap, andthe curvature of the guides I 5 being purposely such that the samefingers i! will be flexed with a minimum effort but will exert adequateforce necessary to properly maintain the cap in position] H V The forcesuppliedby the fingers Bin their tainer contents. If too much force isapplied, the container will tend to tilt on the conveyor, and impro ercap application will result. By con structing andarranging the fingersas shown and limiting the force to that necessary to exert a proper,guiding influence upon the cap, it is possible to apply closures tosmall four-ounce capacity containers moving on a flat link belt conveyorI6, as shown in Figure 3, without employing a star wheel or otherequipment for positively moving the containers through the machine.

The cap. arresters 6 serve a triple function; (a) they hold the cap inengagement with the bottom plate 5 of the cap chute, thus preventing thecaps from surmounting the stops ll prior to impact of the container withthe cap; (b) they serve to hold the forwardmost cap in a position wherethe oncoming cap will not Verrideit;'and (0) they press the rear edge ofthe cap into engagement with the bottom plate during the extractionmovementf l The guiding horns 1 are preferably formed of guiding actionis determined'to some extent,at,, least, by the weight of thecontainer'and the con-- vided with a press-down surface l9 which isadapted to engage the head of the cap as it is extracted from themechanism. The horns serve to guide the cap laterally and also retardforward motion of the cap at a rate faster than the forwardmoticn of thejar to which the cap is being applied. They serve a third function offorcing the cap downwardly onto the jaras the cap is extracted fromthe-feedingmechanism.

The horns are each yieldable independentlyofthe other and independentlyofthe arresters 6.

The bottom plate5 is cut away, as indicated at 20, to permit the cap 12to 'move forwardly and downwardly as the container 14 extracts it fromthe mechanism, at the same time properly supporting the rear portionofthe cap skirt throughout the whole of the extraction 'movement,'insuring proper positioning of the cap on the jar. A tapered opening ispreferredlbecause' it thus provides a two-point support for the rear.edgeof the cap, preventing lateral tilting. As'will be observed fromFigures2 and 3, as the cap is V moved from its position'on the bottomplate 5, the

edge of the cap skirtwill passthrough theopening 26, and the cap'will besupported at spaced points on itsperiphery by engagement with theopposite legs of the bottomplate 5, these points being indicated at 2iand 22 in Figure 2.

The bottom 'plate 5 andthe opening 20 are so constructed that the capbeing extracted from the mechanism will gradually move from a posi-'tion where its rim is in engagement with the bottom plate, as indicatedin Figure 1, to a position where the closure is in a plane almostparallel with the horizontal plane of the'open mouth of the container,as shown in Figur e 3, with the cap moving progressively into theopening 20.

The opening 20 is such that the closure will drop from the bottom plate,leaving both points of support substantially simultaneously and avoid-'ing any lateraltilting of the cap at the'instant of drop off. The jarand closure at such point are in closely spaced relationship, and-theclosing motion is short. I Y 'Y'? The arresters 6, guiding horns Landcontoured bottom plate 5 are more" fully disclosed and claimed in thecopending application of Paul Gschwend and John M. ShariLSerialNo."757;530,

filed June 27, 1947, and entitled Qlosure feeding devices. 1 a

In the operation of the mechanism, closures l2 are supplied to the chute2, being preferably fed thereto continuously from a hopper". The lowermost closure as it moves down the chute 21wil1 come into engagement withthe arresters 6 which will hold the'closure in engagement with thebottom plate 5 and will slow downthe forward M. The container ispreferably movedonlthe,

conveyor belt which operates continuously and may .b .part i of a mechaism for co v yin Ja through a vacuumizing machine, such-as thatdisclosed in the copending application of John M. Sharf,-Serial*No.-757,545, filed June 27, 1947, andentitled Method and-apparatus forsealin contain rs linen im actsof the jar 4,4 with the closure 4 osiioned enga ements th t e ps 2 l th closure will be elevated over thestops l I and will be conveyed forwardly by the jar I4. Almostinstantaneously with the elevation of the closure over the stops H, theclosure will come into engagement with the guides l5 which will limitthe forward motion of the cap and prevent its proceeding in advance ofthe container. When the jars are rapidly fed through the machine, thereis an appreciable impact force applied to the caps, and it is desirableto arrest the forward motion of the cap as quickly as possible so as tomaintain the cap in engagement with the lip of the jar as forward motionof the jar continues. The guiding elements l5 yieldingly hold the cap inproper lateral position, and since the guiding elements are integralwith the resilient fingers 8, they are spread apart as the cap isextracted but continue to exert a yielding force against the cap,maintaining lateral alignment until the cap is engaged and guided by thehorns l. The lateral portions H and N3 of the horns I serve to laterallyguide the closure as forward motion of the container continues. Thearresters 6 apply downward force to the rear edge of the closure, andthe rim of the closure is supported at spaced points by the legs of thebottom plate 5. The press-down surfaces I 9 of the horns also serve tomaintain a downwardly directed pressure on the closure, holding it inengagement with the container. The closure is supported at its forwardedge by engagement between the container lip and the closure and atspaced points along the rear surface of the closure skirt by the legs ofthe bottom plate 5, as previously mentioned. At the drop-off point, thecap has assumed an almost horizontal position, substantially parallelwith the plane of the open mouth of the container, and the horns l areflexed upwardly, applying a downward pressure to the container. The capdrops off the bottom plate 5, and the force of the horns is effectivefor snapping the closure down onto the jar.

The closure and container are then fed to a mechanism such as aconventional press-down belt which is effective for setting the closurefirmly onto the container and efiecting a final hermetic seal.

From the foregoing, it will be clear that with the mechanism of thepresent invention, it is possible to effect feeding of closures at arapid rate without the necessity of mechanism engageable with the wallof the container to positively drive the container through the capreleasing and feeding zone and effect cap application. Frictionalengagement between the bottom of the container and the conveying belt isadequate, since the release is effective upon the application of slightpressure. At the same time, effective control is exercised over theclosure to maintain it in proper alignment with the container to besealed, and. faulty feeding is obviated by the positive stoparrangement.

The invention is particularly useful in vacuumclosing machines, for itis possible with the mechanism of the present invention to apply theclosures-quickly to-the-contaiuers-as theyemerge from the zone where airwithin the container head space --has been replaced with -steam--orother -=condensab le vapor; the cap being --applied without -substantialdisturbance of the "steam within -=th e head space of the containerwhich would -result =i n the contamination of the ;steam withair;

While *I =-have illustrated and described a preferrgl empodiment ,ofmyjnventiomit will be understoodt-hat't'he same-is not limited theretobut may be otherwise embodied and practiced within the scope of thefollowing claims.

I claim:

1. In a closure-feeding and applying device: a closure release mechanismcomprising an inclined chute down which closures may pass; a pair ofresilient fingers; and means attaching said fingers to said chuteadjacent the lower end thereof for limited fiexure each as a unit, eachof said fingers comprising: (a) a stop, (b) a guide disposed above thestop, and (c) an attaching shank, said stops lying in the path ofmovement of closures down the chute, closure-engaging portions on saidstops for intersecting the lowermost closure in the chute by engagementwith the closure skirt on opposite sides thereof adjacent the edge ofthe skirt, with the skirt projecting from the chute into the path ofmovement of a container to be closed moving below the chute, said stopsbeing constructed and arranged to enable the closure to surmount thesame upon slight upward movement of the closure resulting from impact ofthe oncoming jar with the closure held in an inclined position,closureengaging portions on said guides for contacting the closure skirton opposite sides thereof upon the closure having surmounted the stops,and closure-supporting portions on said stops upon which the edge of theclosure skirt may slide during extraction from between said guides, thelimited flexure of the fingers away from each other permitting theclosure to pass between the guides while the guides apply guidingpressure to the closure on opposite sides of the skirt, with the edge ofthe skirt on opposite sides of the closure sliding on theclosure-supporting portions of the stops.

2. A cap-release mechanism in accordance with claim 1 in which theyielding guides are curved outwardly so that the component of thrustupon forward motion of the closure is directed outwardly, causing theguides to be spread apart upon forward motion of the closure.

3. A cap-release mechanism in accordance with claim 1 in which the stopsare curved inwardly toward the axis of the closure support so that thereis no substantial component of thrust outwardly upon movement of aclosure into engagement with said stops and in which the yielding guidesare curved outwardly so that there is a substantial component of thrustin an outward direction to spread said guides upon forward movement of aclosure therebetween.

4. A cap-release mechanism in accordance with claim 1 in which the stopsare engageable with the closure skirt at spaced points and in which theyielding guides are engageable with the closure skirt at spaced pointsslightly to the rear of the points of engagement of the closure with thestops along the direction of travel of the closure, the arrangementbeing such that upon elevation of the closure over the stops, the skirtof the closure will engage the yielding guides prior to any substantialforward motion 'REFERENCESJCITED of the closure I Q 7 The iollowinreferences are of'record in the 5. A cap-release mechanism in accordancefil f ,5 a with claim 1 in which the yielding guides engage 9 15 en theclosure skirt at spaced points forwardly of the 5 j r UNITED STATESPATENTS transverse axis of the closure and yieldingly en- 1 gage theskirt of the closure untilthe closure has gggz gg'g Mar 3 2 moved to apoint where the guides have the 2 386797 Hohl et a] n 1. 1945 closure atspaced points substantially to the rear 2433549 Enkur et "fi D 194,1

10 I f v. I --I-V---V' l of the transverse axis of the closure.

v I HAROLD H. BORTHWICK.

